The writers will lead prose and poetry writing workshops each morning from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Centennial Student Union's rooms 202 (Hautman) and 203 (Lemon).

During the week they will meet with individual writers in the community and with high school students and other groups. On Thursday, Feb. 20, at 3 p.m. in CSU Ostrander Auditorium, they will lead a discussion on the craft of writing. Also on Thursday, at 7:30 p.m. in CSU Room 253, they will read from their published work. All events are free and open to the public.

Pete Hautman (pictured at right) is the author of more than 20 novels for adults and teens, including the 2004 National Book Award winner "Godless," Los Angeles Book Prize winner "The Big Crunch," and three New York Times Notable Books: "Drawing Dead," "The Mortal Nuts," and "Rash."

His “young adult” novels range from science fiction to mystery to contemporary drama to romantic comedy.

Hautman divides his time between Golden Valley, Minn., and Stockholm, Wis. His latest book is "The Cydonian Pyramid," book 2 of the Klaatu Diskos trilogy. The third book in the trilogy, "The Klaatu Terminus," will be published in April 2014.

Alex Lemon is the author of "Happy: A Memoir" and three poetry collections: "Mosquito," "Hallelujah Blackout," and "Fancy Beasts." "The Wish Book," a new book of poems, and an essay collection are forthcoming from Milkweed Editions in 2014.

His writing has appeared in Esquire, American Poetry Review, Ploughshares, Best American Poetry, Tin House, Kenyon Review, AGNI, New England Review, The Southern Review and jubilat, among others. Among his awards are a 2005 Fellowship in Poetry from the NEA and a 2006 Minnesota Arts Board Grant.

Lemon (pictured at left) is a frequent book reviewer for the Dallas Morning News. He lives in Fort Worth, Texas, and teaches at TCU.

An interview with the writer, part of the “Authors in Transit” series on public-radio station KMSU 89.7 FM, will air on Thursday, Feb. 20, at 1 p.m., and Friday, Feb. 21, at 11 a.m.

This year’s Good Thunder Reading Series is funded by the Minnesota State Mankato Department of English, the College of Arts and Humanities, the Office of Institutional Diversity, the Nadine B. Andreas Endowment, the Eddice B. Barber Visiting Writer Endowment, the Robert C. Wright Endowment, and individual donors. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Prairie Lakes Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. Minnesota State Mankato Library Services and the Barnes & Noble Bookstore at Minnesota State Mankato offer additional assistance.

For more information about the series, contact Richard Robbins at the Minnesota State Mankato Department of English, 507-389-1354, or see the web site at www.english.mnsu.edu/gt/.